Struggles with finding a nursing job....

[ohyeah]

A nursing degree today is a total waste. You will not get hired due to a lack of new grad programs, oversaturation of new grad RNs and an influx of forgein RNs. You will end up unemployed and in debt without any skills that you can use in any other market. Look it up. google "RN New Grads unemployed". NOBODY WILL HIRE NEW GRADS. The scant new grad opportunities that exist see HUNDREDS if applicants for 10-20 positions. Do not waste your money..........do something else----------the RN ship has sailed----it is over.

[mmm333, LVN]

The post was meant to be positive, not scary. I'm pointing out how to take this situation in stride and move forward. You got hired- Congratulations, I don't know what area you are in or your background, but I do know that many new grads remain unemployed from last year and this year, which is a fact. Not to be sassy but one person getting a job does not mean that everyone will achieve the same result. (You must have truly deserved it so I won't label it "luck"). Our government has done a pretty good job of averting an economic depression (by the definition which is three consecutive quarters or more of recession, we have already had a depression). To say that the fundamentals of our economy have serious problems that pose risks is not unfair- I feel like we are quite lucky that it hasn't been worse, I hope that it is not. I think my point is, be prepared for any possibility- by all means seek out any opportunities you can- but just prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. I have seen too many people hurt by planning for a recovery promised to them by the news and politicians while the economists and the numbers tell a different story. There are still huge trade deficits, budget deficits, unemployment numbers setting records, and all sorts of problems with the real estate and securities markets. Until I see our country exporting something into other markets and creating job numbers, I will continue to urge people to spend less and protect themselves from risk and instability, simply as a matter of conscience. Investing in education is actually one great way to spend time during a recession when work is hard to get- I would never suggest that a degree is a "waste" (it didn't say that in my post). But if you truly find yourself stuck in state with very little opportunity and see other avenues, then you can decide whether you want to pursue them. We do need people in other fields, especially in policy/law/business with a nursing background and an understanding of what nurses do, how hard they work, and how they are different from other clinicians. Technology is another area- there is ample grant funding for startups and application vendors. My point is that you'll always be a nurse and no one can take that away from you simply because you didn't get a job in Med-Surg right out of school. The point is to either work or further your education one way or another rather than stay frozen in the headlights while hemorrhaging cash.

One last item- please don't be so quick to chime in with criticism for unemployed people in a rough predicament when you yourself are not in that same predicament. These people are going to have a different perspective from yours.

[mmm333, LVN]

The post was meant to be positive, not scary. I'm pointing out how to take this situation in stride and move forward. You got hired- Congratulations, I don't know what area you are in or your background, but I do know that many new grads remain unemployed from last year and this year, which is a fact. Not to be sassy but one person getting a job does not mean that everyone will achieve the same result. (You must have truly deserved it so I won't label it "luck"). Our government has done a pretty good job of averting an economic depression (by the definition which is three consecutive quarters or more of recession, we have already had a depression). To say that the fundamentals of our economy have serious problems that pose risks is not unfair- I feel like we are quite lucky that it hasn't been worse, I hope that it is not. I think my point is, be prepared for any possibility- by all means seek out any opportunities you can- but just prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. I have seen too many people hurt by planning for a recovery promised to them by the news and politicians while the economists and the numbers tell a different story. There are still huge trade deficits, budget deficits, unemployment numbers setting records, and all sorts of problems with the real estate and securities markets. Until I see our country exporting something into other markets and creating job numbers, I will continue to urge people to spend less and protect themselves from risk and instability, simply as a matter of conscience. Investing in education is actually one great way to spend time during a recession when work is hard to get- I would never suggest that a degree is a "waste" (it didn't say that in my post). But if you truly find yourself stuck in state with very little opportunity and see other avenues, then you can decide whether you want to pursue them. We do need people in other fields, especially in policy/law/business with a nursing background and an understanding of what nurses do, how hard they work, and how they are different from other clinicians. Technology is another area- there is ample grant funding for startups and application vendors. My point is that you'll always be a nurse and no one can take that away from you simply because you didn't get a job in Med-Surg right out of school. The point is to either work or further your education one way or another rather than stay frozen in the headlights while hemorrhaging cash.

One last item- please don't be so quick to chime in with criticism for unemployed people in a rough predicament when you yourself are not in that same predicament. These people are going to have a different perspective from yours.

[hiddencatRN, BSN, RN]

The post was meant to be positive, not scary. I'm pointing out how to take this situation in stride and move forward. You got hired- Congratulations, I don't know what area you are in or your background, but I do know that many new grads remain unemployed from last year and this year, which is a fact. Not to be sassy but one person getting a job does not mean that everyone will achieve the same result. (You must have truly deserved it so I won't label it "luck"). Our government has done a pretty good job of averting an economic depression (by the definition which is three consecutive quarters or more of recession, we have already had a depression). To say that the fundamentals of our economy have serious problems that pose risks is not unfair- I feel like we are quite lucky that it hasn't been worse, I hope that it is not. I think my point is, be prepared for any possibility- by all means seek out any opportunities you can- but just prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. I have seen too many people hurt by planning for a recovery promised to them by the news and politicians while the economists and the numbers tell a different story. There are still huge trade deficits, budget deficits, unemployment numbers setting records, and all sorts of problems with the real estate and securities markets. Until I see our country exporting something into other markets and creating job numbers, I will continue to urge people to spend less and protect themselves from risk and instability, simply as a matter of conscience. Investing in education is actually one great way to spend time during a recession when work is hard to get- I would never suggest that a degree is a "waste" (it didn't say that in my post). But if you truly find yourself stuck in state with very little opportunity and see other avenues, then you can decide whether you want to pursue them. We do need people in other fields, especially in policy/law/business with a nursing background and an understanding of what nurses do, how hard they work, and how they are different from other clinicians. Technology is another area- there is ample grant funding for startups and application vendors. My point is that you'll always be a nurse and no one can take that away from you simply because you didn't get a job in Med-Surg right out of school. The point is to either work or further your education one way or another rather than stay frozen in the headlights while hemorrhaging cash.

One last item- please don't be so quick to chime in with criticism for unemployed people in a rough predicament when you yourself are not in that same predicament. These people are going to have a different perspective from yours.

PBI- the original poster said that it was a waste to have a nursing job, so I think perhaps marcnaslipknot's post was in reply to the original poster and not your reply?

[mmm333, LVN]

oh I see, yeah, probably. It's a good point. No education is a waste- but it's also true that not all education pays the bills, either! i should know!

Sure none of us wants to hear too much complaining in a world just brimming with it. (For this, there is the "unsubscribe from this post" link in our emails). But new grads should be allowed to vent- they've had a rough couple of years and many if not most of them will be at a disadvantage in trying to avoid becoming "old news" in the eyes of hiring managers if they can't find that first job within 1-3 years. There are also very real flaws in economic fundamentals at play, which affect everything, and some of us want to look at this realistically while asking "OK, what now?" I entered a related but non-nursing field and I feel like I represent nurses and nursing positively in that field. Some people are just going to have to do that if the numbers don't change in the near future. For me it was "take this job" or move my wife into a less safe neighborhood, which was unacceptable since we were already living in shadytown. I think in the long run it's not a bad thing for the profession to have widely spread roots- and you never know, it might take you somewhere nice. It is what it is.

[McGwillis]

I share the frustration expressed here, and I am a nurse who has a year of experience. I just passed the 7 month threshold. Something has got to give. I urge everyone I know who thinks about going into nursing NOT to at this point. WORK. Make money ... there just aren't enough jobs out there for all of the RNs that exist. Nursing shortage is not a reality. There are plenty of nurses. There just aren't enough positions, because there isn't enough funding for adequate staffing!

Negativity is a reality when it comes to this crisis. Lots of us worked our butts off to fulfill the dream of being a nurse, only to be unemployed and constantly rejected. I apply for at least 5 jobs a week (5 is actually a minimum). I have yet to get hired full time in 7 months of this (just got hired temporary per diem, though). Don't get on anybody's case for being upset about this crisis.

[McGwillis]

Oops. When I say "7 month threshold" I mean that I have been unemployed for that long.

[doink]

OhYeah:

I know how you feel. I know how you FEEL. I was there not too long ago. I know how it feels to work your behind off in school only to realize that your grades, volunteer, externship and healthcare experience do not matter. You are a new grad. Everyone around me who got a job had a 'hook up'.

That is the main reason for working as a CNA while going to nursing school. I believe you can start working as CNA after 1 yr of school. Many of my classmates didn't bother because either they were lazy, or the pay wasn't much compared to their old jobs. Now the same people are struggling to get jobs after graduating. Working as a CNA gives alot of perks that is not advertised. Advices from nurses already working there on everything from job prospects to their experiences. Gets your foot in the door and if you are a good worker.... lots of good references. Everyone can easily get a generic reference from their nursing professors but not everyone can get references from their nursing supervisors at their hospital. And easier to adjust to the new work environment once you become a RN because you "know the system".

Hell, I was working as a tech at one of the department at a teaching hospital. And when I graduated, they were not hiring any GN due to hiring preferences. So my superviors using their hookups giving good word for me for other departments. Luckly, my procrastination paid off. GN slots opened up on my floor and when I finally took the nclex and passed, they natually offered the RN job to me.

Once good way that my assistant director and other nurses told me is that go to the floors you want to work in person with your resume. Find that director and introduce yourself. You will stand out more and will give a good impression on the director who is in charge of hiring than a anynomous resume posting online. She told me they receive good 100 applications every 1-2 weeks. It shows that you really do want to work there. Same advice I keep hearing while working as a tech on my floor.